Google will used offline and online ads to inform people, but also a new website

Oct 17, 2011 15:21 GMT  ·  By

Google has been talking about online security and advising users on how to stay safe for quite a while now, in its blogs, help pages and so on. But it's taking it one step further with the launch of a 'security best practices' website in the UK and an upcoming advertising and information campaign for it.

Google has partnered with the British Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) for the campaign, however, CAB will only provide guidance and help to the company, but Google is paying for the whole thing and running it on its own.

"Today in the UK we launched Good To Know, a consumer advertising campaign designed to give people practical guidance on staying safe online," Alma Whitten, Director of Privacy, Product and Engineering at Google, wrote.

"While people want to stay safe online, many of them don’t feel equipped to do so. Our goal with the Good To Know campaign is to provide people with practical guidance, from selecting safe passwords to keeping their online accounts secure," she said.

As part of Good to Know, Google will run ads in newspapers, on buses and trains, and, of course, online offering both short tips but also places to find more info, like the "Good to Know" Google website.

"Today we’re also launching a new section of the Google website that makes learning about security and privacy easier for the average consumer. We know that in-depth resources like privacy policies and terms of service are often too long, complex and legalistic," Whitten said.

The guides on Good to Know on the other hand, aim to explain the issues in a way that makes sense to people and also to provide them with info that is actually useful to most folks. Of course, many of the guides tout Google technologies and the ways the company is helping people stay safe, but that's to be expected.